The Pretty Little Liars alum made a surprise return to Chicago Med alongside Nick Gehlfuss for the show’s season 11 premiere, its milestone 200th episode
Chicago Med delivered on its return to NBC last night. In the world of One Chicago, luckily for fans, saying goodbye to a beloved character doesn’t always mean it’s a goodbye for long — and Chicago Med proved as much when it came back for its milestone 200th episode, with not one but two previously departed cast members. Though it had been previously reported that Nick Gehlfuss would be returning as Dr. Will Halstead for a series of season 11 episodes, when its premiere episode aired last night, none other than Torrey DeVitto also made a comeback.
Torrey, who plays Dr. Natalie Manning, was part of Chicago Med’s inaugural season, and left the show at the end of season six in 2021, while Nick was also part of the original cast, but left the show in 2023 after season eight, when his character left the hospital in an effort to reunite with his ex-fiancée, Dr. Natalie.
In Nick and Torrey’s absence, off-camera, their characters were working on their relationship, particularly adjusting to Will becoming Natalie’s son Owen’s stepfather, plus, Natalie is pregnant and expecting her and Nick’s first child together. In an effort to strengthen their bond, he takes him on a special boys trip to Chicago to watch a Chicago Bears game, hence his return to the hospital.
Naturally however, it being Chicago Med, and the 200th episode, drama, or rather trauma, ensues, when Owen, Natalie’s son, gets shot at the hospital. Speaking with Deadline about the storyline, Torrey — who welcomed her first child with husband Jared LaPine in November 2024 — said: “It puts Natalie back in the thick of it on Chicago Med. When they called me and told me the storyline breakdown, I was like, ‘I would expect no less.'”
“Natalie always had some trauma or emotion, or something happening. Of course, I’m not going to come back to sit around eating candy or something. I’ll be back in the thick of it and bawling my eyes out,” she teased. “It’s like going back home for a visit,” she added of her comeback, maintaining: “It was really lovely to be there with everyone. It was as if no time had passed and I wasn’t expecting that.”
Nick, also speaking with Deadline about getting to come back, and with Torrey by his side, shared: “Knowing Torrey would join me for this storyline made the return all the more exciting and special. It really couldn’t have happened any other way, and it was wonderful to celebrate the 200th episode together. It was as if we hadn’t stopped working with one another; we fell right back into our rhythm.”
“The most palpable part was that our characters are exploring such emotional material around parenthood, and we both are lucky enough to be navigating that in our personal lives. I got to meet her daughter for the first time on set! Just incredible. All of this played into our scenes together. The fans are going to be so surprised, and I hope satisfied,” he added.
This is Torrey’s first acting gig in almost a year, since taking a break to focus on her very first year of motherhood. Meanwhile Nick, who is also working on CBS’ FBI spin-off CIA, has been married to Lilian Matsuda since 2016, and they share two kids, one born in 2021, and another in 2024.
